ETWD project under way

Feb. 7, 2013

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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The areas in color represent specific sections where new pipeline will be laid. Construction will begin on the East System (blue) along Ridge Route Drive this week and move into the West System(yellow) by March. EL TORO WATER DISTRICT

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The existing water recycling plant on Ridge Route Road will be expanded to increase treatment and delivery of recycled water for irrigation - up to 1,400 acre-feet per year - enough to cover the Village with six inches of water. EL TORO WATER DISTRICT

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El Toro Water District's Director of Operations Dennis Cafferty points out an irrigation control valve for recycled water at the Village golf course. ETWD is beginning work on a two-year project that will increase the amount of recycled water produced for local irrigation. The golf course uses 140 million gallons annually. JENNIFER KARMARKAR

The areas in color represent specific sections where new pipeline will be laid. Construction will begin on the East System (blue) along Ridge Route Drive this week and move into the West System(yellow) by March.EL TORO WATER DISTRICT

Work will begin this week on El Toro Water District's $37 million, two-year, multi-phase recycled water expansion project that will increase the amount of recycled water produced for local irrigation. ETWD plans to construct 19 miles of new pipeline beneath the roadways in portions of Laguna Woods and Laguna Hills and expand the existing water recycling plant on Ridge Route Drive.

The Globe spoke with Dennis Cafferty, director of operations for ETWD, to find out how the project will impact the community.

Q: What is the purpose of the recycled water expansion project?

A: By producing more recycled water, the District will save imported (potable) drinking water for household consumption. The nature of the geology in Orange County is there is a big ground water basin in the north and central parts of the county, but down here in South County there is no ground water. We have to rely on imported water from Northern California and the Colorado River. That's expensive and also introduces reliability issues because all the water comes from a single treatment plant and a single pipeline. If those go out of service, we don't have water until it's fixed. The other reason is we don't know when the next drought is coming. To the extent that we can reduce dependence on those water supplies on a regional basis is better for all concerned.

Q: Will any of the recycled water produced be used for household or sanitary purposes?

A: Absolutely not. The recycled water is purely and only for irrigation at dedicated irrigation meters. We are required by the California Dept. of Public Health to do specific tests at each site to make sure there are no connections of any kind between recycled water and irrigated water systems.

Q: When and where will the pipeline construction begin?

A: We're starting preliminary work this week on Ridge Route Drive between Avenida De La Carlota and Santa Vittoria Drive. The contractor will dig potholes – small targeted excavations to locate utilities. They'll be doing that for a couple weeks. We are still waiting to finalize funding from the state, but as soon as that happens the contractor doing the East System is likely to start digging around Moulton Parkway and then the rest of Ridge Route. The City of Laguna Hills has a street improvement project, so we will focus there first, and ultimately move into the Gate 5 and Gate 6 area within a few weeks. Construction on the West System will lag by a couple of weeks. Construction on the North System in Laguna Hills will be the final phase.

Q: What can residents expect to see in their neighborhoods in terms of construction?

A: As we are installing pipeline, we're going to have to come through with excavation equipment, dig trenches, install pipelines, backfill and pave, so that's a moving operation. The construction crews will only be on a given street for a couple of days. We'll be impacting traffic and making some level of noise during working hours. It's typical construction inconveniences associated with a project like this, but we are trying to do everything we can to help mitigate them.

Q: What is ETWD doing to notify the community?

A: We have gone to great lengths to communicate with the community, including presentations for various clubs, to the city councils of both cities and to the board members in Laguna Woods Village. We've also done updates on TV-6. We are finishing a project-specific website that includes an interactive, color-coded map so people can see where the pipes will go and when the construction crew will be in their neighborhood. We've also had conversations with Professional Community Management and the fire department about how to manage access to the community, and we will continue to communicate with them throughout construction to make sure we're accommodating the needs of the community.

Q: How were the areas in Laguna Woods and Laguna Hills chosen for this project?

A: The first step was to have a consultant look at where irrigation demand was located and identify the most cost effective system within certain limits to deliver that water. The biggest users of recycled water for irrigation are the Village golf course and Par 3 course. The water is coming from the plant on Ridge Route Drive, and to go anywhere further would require more pipeline without having users to deliver it to.

Q: Will other areas served by ETWD benefit as well?

A: Yes. It will allow us in the event of emergency spread potable water further because we don't have to use as much of it for irrigation.

Q: Will existing water meters be replaced?

A: All recycled water will go through new recycled water meters. That entails disconnecting existing potable meters and replacing them with recycled water meters. Then we will reconnect the new meter to the old system that was previously served by the potable meter. A total of 219 water meters will be converted from potable water to recycled water, about 150 in Laguna Woods.

Q: Will all areas of Laguna Woods Village be able to use recycled water for irrigation?

A: No. We are not serving any recycled water in United Mutual, and it's purely a function of how the community was developed. In Third Mutual there are hundreds of dedicated irrigation meters. In United there are only four, so it didn't make financial sense to go there. In the West System, the areas we are not serving south of Via Carrizo toward Gate 9 and west of Santa Vittoria at Gate 11 are about what made the most financial sense now. We hope to expand to those areas later, but I have no time frame for that.

Q: How is the project being funded?

A: The capital costs to construct the system come from a state revolving fund loan, Prop 50 grant and ETWD reserves. We also have an executed agreement with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California through which we will receive a rebate amounting to as much as $250 per acre-foot of potable water converted to recycled water.Â The rebate funds will be used to help fund the ongoing operations and maintenance expense of the recycled water system.

Q: Will ratepayers see any reduction on their water bills?

A: Presuming they use the same amount of water, the recycled water customer will save 10% on the commodity portion of their water bill.Â Those customers that are not using recycled water will not see any change in their water bills as a result of the project.

For more information go to www.etwd.com and click on "Recycled Water Expansion" or call the dedicated phone line at 949-837-0880.

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